I stared at him, eyes wide.
I'd already braced myself to be used as a shield. But I never imagined he'd say it to my face with such shameless audacity.
Before I could fire back a single word, the kidnapper barked his command. "Fine! Bring her over. We trade, one for one!"
Bertram pushed me forward. There wasn't a flicker of hesitation in those deep, dark eyes.
I took it all in, and a bitter laugh echoed somewhere inside me.
A sacrificial pawn who could be discarded at any moment in this game had no right to hope for even a scrap of genuine feeling.
Just as the exchange was about to happen, the kidnapper threw his head back and let out a jagged laugh.
"You'd throw away your own wife to save this bitch, and you call her the one you love? What a joke! Today, I'm killing HER!"
Before the last word left his mouth, he kicked Bertram aside and raised the knife high.
Laughing like a man possessed, he lunged for Alexis's chest.
"Alexis—!"
Bertram's pupils contracted to pinpoints. He shoved me away with all his strength and threw himself over Alexis.
And I lost my balance completely, pitching backward off the edge of the rooftop.